Religious History (sage ability)
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Religious history is an amateur-status sage ability that gives knowledge of religion's influence over world history. This enables the character to understand the comparative power of religious forces battling for the souls of the world's inhabitants. The ability gives special, detailed knowledge of the character's chosen religion, but also provides an overview — and appreciation — for other religions as well.
The ability also gives knowledge of the religion's triumphs and blasphemies. More than anyone, the character has a clear understanding of the dangers presented by new religious ideas — how they fracture the beliefs of followers and spawn heretical factionalism. Knowing this can serve as a powerful justification for eradicating blasphemers, burning heretics and crusades against non-believers.
Benefits
This perspective provides the character with a defensive, reasoning cynicism, regarding their religion. Acts of cruelty are "necessary." True belief is "necessary." In support of this, the sage ability grants a +1 saving throw versus clerical spells and other forms of religious magic.
Additionally, because the character understands the importance of great works to religious fervor, a visit to an awe-inspiring religious site related to the character's religion provides a flat, one-time increase in the character's experience by +2%. For example, a Catholic character with 20,000 X.P. would gain 400 more simply by looking upon the Sistine Chapel.
Furthermore, any and all experience gained over the next month is adjusted by +3%, due to the inspiration of having visited the religious site. Multiple visits to multiple sites are not cumulative, however. Character should take care to space these pilgrimages apart accordingly.
